Named By: | Junchang Lu & Stephen L. Brusatte in 2015 |
Time Period: | Early Cretaceous 125 Ma |
Location: | China, Liaoning Province - Yixian Formation |
Size: | Holotype individual estimated to be about 1.65 meters long at the time of death (not including feathers) |
Diet: | Carnivore |
Fossil(s): | Partial skull and partial skeletal remains |
Classification: | | Chordata | Reptilia | Dinosauira | Theropoda | Maniraptora | Dromaeosauridae | |
Zhenyuanlong (meaning "Zhenyuan's dragon", from Chinese Pinyin Long long "dragon") is a genus of dromaeosaurid dinosaur from the Yixian Formation of Liaoning, China. It lived during the Aptian age of the early Cretaceous period, approximately 125 million years ago. It is known from a single specimen belonging to the species Zhenyuanlong suni. This type specimen preserved a nearly complete skeleton that contains traces of feathers, including long tail feathers and large wings. In addition to further complicating diversity of Liaoning dromaeosaurids, this specimen provides the first evidence of well-developed pennaceous feathers in a large, non-flying dromaeosaur, raising the question of what function such wings would serve.